The Writer's Block

The quote I remember the most often about writing comes from a movie, the unforgettable "Throw Momma From the Train." It isn't the beginning of his ill-fated novel, which he could never manage to nail, but the one you hear over and over throughout the film. "A writer, writes."

Duh! Unfortunately, way too often, a writer DOESN'T write. Here I will list a few of the reasons I don't write.

"I work forty plus hours a week." (Actually thirty-eight right now, but who's counting).

"I'm hungry." (ALWAYS)

"I don't have time to settle down and write something before I have to do something else." (Fairly valid, seeing as I am the largest writing snail on earth. If I'm LUCKY I will leave a nice slime trail of words behind me.)

The truth is that writing is work. I sit down waiting for that torrent of words that makes my writing so different from every other writer, and it is a slow-go. I write a sentence--then correct my spelling, change a word or two, in other words, stall for time while the next sentence forms. I write the next one, change the word that is a repeat of a word in the previous sentence--are you bored yet? Sound familiar? The good part of this is that I have actually developed my spelling and grammar to the point where these no longer slow me down. But that is never the real hitch, is it?

Where does inspiration originate? That is the FIRE that sends those words flying onto paper with the speed of a machine gun--tat tat tat tat tat tat tat!!!!!!!

For me the fuel is readers. If I can read something out loud to someone else, it keeps coming. Hopefully this blog can take off and become an instrument for overcoming writer's block while becoming a "block" where other writers can also share. Jump in and have fun! Now I really do have to get ready for work. (Excuse #1, you know.)

:-) Mari